Doing Laundry on the Camino

I've had a few folks ask about doing laundry 

while on the Camino.

I think I've blogged this before.

But I can't find it so here goes…

If you are walking on your own 

and staying in albergues, 

there will almost always be a place 

for you to do HAND laundry 

and hang it out to dry.

If you are walking with us on our Best of Both, 

here is a list of what I know to be true:

SJPP:  Hand laundry in bathroom and racks to dry

Roncesvalles:  Hand laundry in laundry room and racks to dry. Also washing machines (lavadoras) and dryers (secadoras)

Zubiri:  Hand laundry and dry on line in back yard

Pamplona:  May be possible to wash small loads in sink and hang on balcony. I'm not yet sure where we will sleep. 

Puente de la Reina:  Lavadoras and secadoras. Also a line to dry.

Estella: Hand laundry and dry on rack

Los Arcos:  Our hospitaleros will do your laundry for very little cost

Viana:  Wash in sink and dry on lines on balcony

Burgos:  Not sure.  Hotel may offer service.

Astorga:  Not sure yet.

Rabanal:  Wash in sink and dry on lines on patio

Molinaseca:  Owners may do laundry for a fee

Ponferrada:   Hotel will do laundry for a fee

Villafranca:  Hospitaleros will do laundry for a small fee

Sarria:  Not sure but assume they have facilities

Portomarin:  Albergue has lavadora/secadora and hand washing options. Lines to dry outside.

Palas:  Washing machines in apartment

Castaneda: Washing machines here

Pedrouzo: Sink and lines to dry outside

Santiago:  Hotel may have facilities - otherwise wash in sink and hang in window or bathroom

Washing By Hand

Oh my! This is a lost art, isn't it?

Well, you're about to learn to do it just like grandma did!

First, buy yourself some hand washing soap. 

I use Fels Naptha but there are others, like Lirio.  

Go to the market and look in the laundry aisle. 

You are looking for a BAR of soap, not a liquid. 

 If in doubt, ask some nice lady,

 "Este es para mi ropa?"

It looks like this inside the wrapper.

Or, another brand might look like this.

Sometimes they have really nice gentle soap for baby clothes.

Once you get the bar, cut it into 4 or 5 pieces.

Share with friends! 

You don't want to carry all that weight, 

and soap is very inexpensive 

and easy to find on the Camino. 

Remember to bring a baggy to keep the soap in.

So now you have your soap.

Next, locate the laundry sink.

It is most likely outside and looks like this:

Grab one of those plastic bins 

that are usually stored under the sink 

and put your clothes in it.

Those are also good to soak your feet in,

by the way!

Fill it with some COLD water. 

You won't have a choice.

 It's always cold! 

Now, rub the soap into your wet clothes.

Then rub them together, squeeze, etc.

Keep working until you make some nice suds!

Rinse.

Empty the water.

Put fresh clean water in the pan.

Rinse again until all suds are gone.

Wring out as much water as possible.

One thing you will find useful are laundry spin dryers. 

They're like an electronic salad spinner 

and they spin your clothes nearly dry! 

You must BE CAREFUL to balance the load.

 If they start jumping around 

and knocking against the sides loudly, 

STOP and re-balance the load.  

When you use these, 

your clothes dry in as little as an hour.

Your clothes are clean!

Now hang them to dry.

You might find a regular clothesline outside.

You might find a line right outside your balcony window.

More often, you will find a rack that looks like this one:

I always take safety pins instead of clothes pins 

to hang up my clothes.

They are less likely to blow off the line

or to walk away.

They also weigh nothing.

So there you go.

Don't be offended.

I know most of you probably already know 

how to do this.

But you'd be surprised how many people

have never hand washed their own clothes.

Be aware that if you have the hotel do the laundry,

it could shrink into something unrecognizable.

They use HOT HOT HOT water to wash 

and HOT HOT HOTTER air to dry.

I prefer to do my own laundry.

Good thing my Macabi skirt only requires washing 

every few weeks!

Buen Camino!

Annie

Joe does laundry in SJPP

PS:  I just found my old blog. 

Here is the link if you are interested.

There are some fun photos there:

doing-laundry-on-camino.html

Buen Camino!

Annie